There are 25 days left until the 35th International Festival of Arts Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk. BelTA invites everyone to take a journey through the festival’s history: each day, we look back at archival materials to highlight the most memorable moments of each festival, year by year. Today is about the 2002 edition.

The 11th International Festival of Arts Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk, held on 19-25 July, brought together artists, singers, dancers, musicians, poets, painters, composers, and directors from 27 countries. For the first time, groups and performers from Belgium and Ireland joined the forum.

On the festival’s opening day, Victory Avenue was inaugurated in Vitebsk, with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko in attendance.

In 2002, the Summer Amphitheater stage was adorned with a traditional vytsinanka (paper-cut artwork). The scenography was designed by renowned theater artist Zinovy Margolin. The festival’s opening gala featured performances by the Pesniary ensemble, the State Academic Folk Dance Ensemble under the direction of Igor Moiseyev, and Russian pop stars.

That year marked the 120th anniversary of the birth of famous Belarusian writers Yanka Kupala and Yakub Kolas. This theme was reflected in many festival programs. The gala concert Cornflower Constellation by Belarusian artists was a declaration of love to the homeland by singers, musicians, and dancers from all regions of the country.

The main event of Russia’s Culture Day was a concert dedicated to the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg. A boxing match between Belarusian and Russian athletes also took place, and the Slavic Cup was established.

Audiences were also captivated by a new festival project - the Balkan Stars gala concert featuring performers from Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Romania.

People’s Artist of Georgia Tamara Gverdtsiteli performed a solo program at the Slavianski Bazaar, singing songs in Russian, Georgian, French, and English. The singer premiered a composition dedicated to Vitebsk and its residents - The Fiddler on the Roof.

The Georgian singer also chaired the international jury of the Vitebsk 2002 young pop singers competition, in which 22 contestants from 19 countries showcased their vocal talents. The Grand Prix was awarded to Ziki (Milovan Zimović) from Yugoslavia. From 2002 onward, laureates of the competition received not only certificates and cash prizes but also a trophy crafted by Vitebsk sculptor Valery Moguchy. The award combined elegant plasticity with symbolic imagery: a female figure with arms raised to the sun, evoking both the silhouette of a lyre and the outline of the Vitebsk Town Hall. The composition was topped with a cornflower, the festival’s main symbol. At its base was a platform shaped like the Summer Amphitheater, with the inscription Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk. The festival award stood 43 centimeters tall. Starting the following year, it was named the Golden Lyre.

Young performers from ten countries took part in the International Children’s Concert Program competition, judged by an adult jury.

Festival guests also attended a creative evening dedicated to composer Yuri Saulsky, whose songs are widely known. Musicians led by Svetlana Bezrodnaya performed a charity concert, with proceeds going toward the restoration of the Holy Dormition Cathedral in Vitebsk.

The Town of Artisans was set up in the square in front of the Town Hall, as well as on Suvorov and Tolstoy streets. Some 300 folk craftspeople from all regions of Belarus came to Vitebsk, 80 of whom were members of the Belarusian Union of Artisans. They showcased a wide array of items: flowers made from wood fibers and straw, leather jewelry, embroidered works, birch bark containers, and much more.

The festival concluded with the Dance Until Dawn concert program.

The main events of the 35th International Festival of Arts Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk will take place from 16 to 19 July, with the first concerts already scheduled for 14 July.

"BelTA"